Off-roader with great scale realism - What to buy?

[BlackSeaRC]

I am a big fan of scale realistic RC vehicles and I am looking for my next purchase.  Can you give me some suggestions please as I don't really see many options to choose from.  My requirements are as follows:

 

- Must have a good level of scale realism.

- Electric powered, 3S minimum. 

- Mainly for use on beach.

- Preferred body type is desert racer (e.g. sand rail, buggy or truck in Baja/Dakar/Twin Hammers style).

- Scale 1:8 / 1:10 / 1:12.

- Kit or RTR would be considered (mainly due to limited choice), but I'd prefer to build something myself if possible.

- Total budget is 800 GBP to get up and running.

 

I don't want a crawler and I don't want a truggy or monster truck type product.  I don't need a basher.  Scale realism is key.  Something like the Traxxas Slash doesn't offer sufficient detail on the body.  I don't expect my budget will be enough to consider any custom solutions.  When the Losi Hammer Rey was released it was quite appealing but I decided against it due to some of the negative handling characteristics.  Now I am thinking about it again and wondering whether this is really my only choice?   Thanks!

[.AJ.]

Ryft?

[Hyper7ftxoutlaw]

Udr? Seems pretty good as a more scale slash! I don’t have one but they look pretty good, if a bit old!

[Redback]

Axial Yeti would fit the bill, ifs desert racer, fast and nimble, can crawl it too

[BlackSeaRC]

12 minutes ago, .AJ. said:

Ryft?

I suppose it is one of the few buggies of this style that is capable of a decent amount of speed.

[BlackSeaRC]

18 hours ago, Hyper7ftxoutlaw said:

Udr? Seems pretty good as a more scale slash! I don’t have one but they look pretty good, if a bit old!

They do perform amazingly but I think the UDR is slightly too large and since I want to buy new, a little bit more than I wanted to spend once you add the batteries into the cost.

[BlackSeaRC]

18 hours ago, Redback said:

Axial Yeti would fit the bill, ifs desert racer, fast and nimble, can crawl it too

Looking into the options, there might be some custom packages that can be used with the Yeti to make it more like an Ultra4 racer.

[Lone-wolf]

how about this in kit or RTR i have seen these in action and very impressed with them https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/element-enduro-gatekeeper-rock-crawler-builders-kit-1332924

[BlackSeaRC]

21 hours ago, Lone-wolf said:

how about this in kit or RTR i have seen these in action and very impressed with them https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/element-enduro-gatekeeper-rock-crawler-builders-kit-1332924

That is similar to something else I came across - the UDI UD1001, but I have heard and seen very little about it.

 

https://udirc.com/portfolio/ud1001/

[GMballistic]

I'd definitely recommend a 1/10th scale Losi Baja Rey for your needs. I had the larger 1/6th version but generally they're very similar. 
Link: https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/1336497?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIh-jXga2h_AIVJe_tCh0E_ACuEAQYASABEgID5_D_BwE

 

Great fun trucks and with the solid rear axle I believe it gives better realism than a lot of the SCT with their independent suspension set ups. You can also add a lot of scale parts yourself for added realism although the trucks do come with some added already like fire extinguishers etc.
My old truck below;
 

 

[BlackSeaRC]

On 30/12/2022 at 15:39, GMballistic said:

I'd definitely recommend a 1/10th scale Losi Baja Rey for your needs. I had the larger 1/6th version but generally they're very similar. 
Link: https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/1336497?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIh-jXga2h_AIVJe_tCh0E_ACuEAQYASABEgID5_D_BwE

 

Great fun trucks and with the solid rear axle I believe it gives better realism than a lot of the SCT with their independent suspension set ups. You can also add a lot of scale parts yourself for added realism although the trucks do come with some added already like fire extinguishers etc.
My old truck below;
 

 

The Losi products are certainly appealing and there are plenty of upgrade options available.  Maybe I am too fussy but it is the smallest details that put me off some models.  On these it is the fact that the front and rear light clusters are just stickers.  On something that costs 500 GBP that is disappointing.  I know these cars are all about the performance and driving but it wouldn't take much to have a simple lens moulding.

[GMballistic]

23 minutes ago, BlackSeaRC said:

The Losi products are certainly appealing and there are plenty of upgrade options available.  Maybe I am too fussy but it is the smallest details that put me off some models.  On these it is the fact that the front and rear light clusters are just stickers.  On something that costs 500 GBP that is disappointing.  I know these cars are all about the performance and driving but it wouldn't take much to have a simple lens moulding.

No offence but I think that is a little too fussy.  😉 

Seriously though if that's what you want then maybe you are better off looking at crawler kits as they do seem to value details like that more than trucks that are meant more to be driven harder/faster to be enjoyed. 
If Arrma, Losi, Traxxas etc etc did add more realistic parts like light lenses then they'd probably get broken within the first few minutes of use. 

If you did go for a crawler type kit you could always modify it to be more of a basher truck I guess, ...you know different gears, motor etc. 

[BlackSeaRC]

21 hours ago, GMballistic said:

No offence but I think that is a little too fussy.  😉 

Seriously though if that's what you want then maybe you are better off looking at crawler kits as they do seem to value details like that more than trucks that are meant more to be driven harder/faster to be enjoyed. 
If Arrma, Losi, Traxxas etc etc did add more realistic parts like light lenses then they'd probably get broken within the first few minutes of use. 

If you did go for a crawler type kit you could always modify it to be more of a basher truck I guess, ...you know different gears, motor etc. 

This is the sort of thing I'd like...

 

 

[GMballistic]

That truck looks awesome @BlackSeaRC. 
If you have a look some of the Losi trucks done with "Vitavon" parts they're pretty close to that, ...costs a lot to do that though and generally ruins the way the trucks drive because of all the added weight.